PolyPlus Packs 10X the Energy of Li-Ion into Waterproof Battery

A California company called PolyPlus is working on new battery technology that is waterproof and can store 10 times the energy of today's lithium-ion batteries. Lithium metal-air batteries have been researched for years. In such a battery, air is used as the cathode that interacts with the lithium. The engineering problem to be solved, however, is that water is always present in the air, and water rapidly degrades lithium. PolyPlus has solved this problem with a membrane that protects the lithium, called a protected lithium electrode. It prevents water from coming into contact with the lithium, but still permits the lithium ions to pass through it. Lithium metal-air batteries could be used in a number of different devices that are powered by lithium-ion batteries today, including cell phones.